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In effectBags & checkoutBag fee scenario

District of Columbia Carryout Bag Fee

Covered DC businesses charge five cents per disposable carryout bag. Bringing your own bag avoids this fee.

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Jurisdiction

Washington, DC

state · District of Columbia

Fee collection began

Jan 1, 2010

Who is affected

1 groups listed

Customers shopping at covered businesses in the District, including businesses selling food or alcohol.

Status

In effect

This policy is listed as currently in effect. Check its sources, review date and jurisdiction.

Curated from DC Council and DOEE sources · reviewed September 16, 2026 · not an automatic feed

How could this affect me?

Your household estimate

Computed from your profile and your saved simulator settings. Nothing here is a prediction about the real world.

What changes?

The statutory charge is $0.05 for each covered bag.
The receipt must show bag quantities and the total fee.
Retailers retain a portion; the balance goes to the Anacostia River Cleanup and Protection Fund.

Who is affected?

Customers shopping at covered businesses in the District, including businesses selling food or alcohol.

What can I do?

Bring a reusable bag on shopping trips.
Check bag quantities on your receipt.
Read DOEE guidance for the complete list of exemptions.

Open the Action Center

What assumptions or uncertainties should I know?

This curated record was reviewed on September 16, 2026; it does not update automatically.
Only count shopping trips and bags subject to the fee. Exempt bags and shopping outside DC are excluded.
Household habits and reusable-bag purchase costs are user assumptions. Optional store credits and other store charges are not modelled.

Timeline

Key dates

Dates from the cited sources. Confirm any deadlines with the issuing authority.

Fee collection began
Jan 1, 2010

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Who to contact

Official contacts

Original policy sources and agency guidance.

Official policy source
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Provenance

Sources for this policy

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Legal text
D.C. Code § 8–102.03 — Establishment of fee
Council of the District of Columbia
Retrieved:
Sep 16, 2026
Official statutory text. PolicyPulse's explanation is a curated summary; check the original for the complete rule.
Open the official document(opens in a new tab)
Explanatory summary
Skip the Bag, Save the River
DC Department of Energy & Environment
Retrieved:
Sep 16, 2026
Agency guidance on covered businesses, exemptions and the start of fee collection.
Open the official document(opens in a new tab)

How to read these citations

A verified record carries the official document title, the jurisdiction that issued it, a direct link, the publication date, and the date PolicyPulse retrieved it. Legal requirements are labelled Legal text; PolicyPulse’s own plain-language rewording is labelled Explanatory summary. The two are never merged into one unattributed block.